I hate phlegm and mucus! It is annoying, it makes it hard to breathe, hard to eat, hard to exercise and it makes you feel like there is something permanently sitting in your throat. It seems like no matter how hard you try to cough or hack it up, it is impossible or it just comes right back. It is also pretty annoying for people around you to listen to you coughing and constantly clearning your throat all day, but you just can’t help it!

Since it is so hard to deal with once it is there, the best solution is to keep it from happening altogether. For a lot of people, the foods that they eat are the cause of phlegm and mucus build up. For a lot of people, the foods that they eat are the cause of phlegm and mucus build up. For a lot of people, the foods that they eat are the cause of phlegm and mucus build up. Some kind of allergy or reaction due to a certain type of food. Some kind of allergy or reaction due to a certain type of food.Tweet Some kind of allergy or reaction due to a certain type of food. So in order to keep that from happening, you need to avoid certain foods. It can vary from person to person but there are common types of foods that are usually the culprit. Check them out below and see what happens when you cut these out of your diet for a couple of days.

1) Sugars – Sugars are a major culprit for a lot of people. It can come in the form of soda pop, flavored coffee, candy, ice cream, bubble gum and any other number of things. If you notice that right after you finish something sugary or as you are drinking a pop that you can feel an influx of phlegm build up, that is a really good indicator. Pay attention the next couple of times that you eat or drink something that is sugary and see if you notice a change.

2) Gluten – Gluten is a major phlegm and mucus culprit for a lot of people. In some people, gluten intolerance is even a disease called celiac disease. The hardest thing about this is that so many of the foods that we eat today have gluten in them. If you didn’t know, gluten is found in wheat products, so anything with wheat in it has gluten in it. Cereals, bread, crackers, the list goes on and on. If you can try cutting gluten out of your diet for a couple of days, you might find that your phlegm build up starts to go away. It can be a difficult dietary change, but it is actually a pretty healthy one because you will be forced to eat more fresh foods as a replacement.

3) Refined Carbs – Examples of refined carbs are white rice, pasta and white bread. Basically a refined carb is from a whole grain that has been stripped of it’s nutrients and vitamins in order to make it finer and have a longer shelf life. Here is a list of refined carbs that you would want to stay away from to see if it helps decrease your mucus production.

These are 3 of the most common culprits when it comes to foods that can and will increase your phlegm and mucus production. If you are really disciplined, try eliminating all of them from your diet and see what happens. If it works, then you can introduce one of them back at a time to see which one is the culprit for you.

If food is not your problem, be sure to check out some of our other articles on how to help cure your phlegm and determine what might be causing it.

What is it exactly that causes phlegm? What triggers the human body to create such a vile, nasty substance that creates a day to day battle full of coughing, hacking, wheezing, hocking, swallowing and throat clearing?

If this is a question you have found yourself asking, you are not alone and interestingly enough, phlegm is often times a form of self-defense that the body uses to protect the the throat and lungs against viruses and other harmful things to the body. But somehow, knowing that does not bring much comfort to those who suffer from it. All that you want is to get rid of that constant feeling of something just sitting in the back of your throat or lungs, making it harder to breathe and seemingly impossible to get rid of.

What To Do first

In order to figure out how you can get rid of your phlegm, you must first know what is causing it. In order to figure out how you can get rid of your phlegm, you must first know what is causing it.Tweet In order to figure out how you can get rid of your phlegm, you must first know what is causing it. Temporary relief from phlegm can be great in the short-term, but if at all possible, the ideal thing to do is figure out a more permanent solution. You want to figure out the source of the phlegm so that you can either eliminate that source, cure it or block it. If you can do that, there is a good chance you can eliminate the problem of having phlegm bother you ever again or at least greatly minimize its impact on your quality of life.

Most people would agree that even just a small bit of relief would make a big difference in how they feel day in and day out. Also, it is not just a phsyical relief, but a social relief. No one wants to be that person in the office that is constantly clearing their throat and coughing throughout the entire day… every day. I know, because I have been there and it is not fun.

So what are the different things that can possibly cause your body to create and build up this nasty, annoying stuff we refer to with such an appropriately sounding name…. phlegm?

The most common known culprits as follows.

Food Allergies

Plant Allergies

Illness or Disease

Air Quality

Reaction to Drugs

Stress

Smoking/Drinking

Gluten

Think about each of these and how they might be the cause of your problems with phlegm. You may already know which one is causing your problems and if you do, then it is just a matter of figuring out how to eliminate, cure or block that problem. If you can’t eliminate, cure or block what is causing your phlegm, then you may have to settle for just figuring out how to treat the symptoms. But in most cases, you can completely get rid of your phlegm if you are willing to take the right actions. Lets dig just a little bit deeper into these causes and exactly how they can cause your body to build up un-wanted phlegm.

Food Allergies:
Food allergies are a very common cause of phlegm for many people. What is interesting, is that a lot of people don’t even realize that it is food that is causing it, or they just love food so much that they are in denial that they need to change their diet. It can be tough because some of people’s favorite types of foods can cause phlegm, but for a better quality of life, it must be done.

Simply identifying what types of foods are making your phlegm build-up worse and cutting them completely out of your diet can completely eliminate it. Some of the most common foods that people have phlegm producing allergies to are Dairy Products such as milk, cheese or yogurt, wheat or gluten products, soy, corn, sugar, bananas, potatoes, cabbage and foods high in Omega-6 fatty acids to name a few. There are many more, but these are the most common. If you are not sure if one of these is the cause, then eliminate all of them from your diet for a week or more and see if your phlegm goes away. If it does, reintroduce one food at a time to determine which one was the culprit.

Plant Allergies:
Most excess phlegm production caused by plants is the result of some sort of allergy that you have to a particular type of plant. These allergies are most often caused by pollen from flowers, trees or grass. This is a difficult one to deal with, especially during allergy season, but there are some pretty good allergy medications out there that can help a lot. Other than taking medicine, just trying to avoid coming into contact with the allergens as much as possible is the best thing you can do. Use common sense, as an example, if you have grass allergies and you have to mow the lawn, then use some sort of face mask to keep you from breathing the grass pollen through your mouth or nose.

Illness or Disease:
There are many diseases that can cause phlegm in the body. Some of the most common are acid reflux or GERD, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), congestive heart failure, cystic fibrosis, lung cancer, pulmonary edema and pulmonary embolisms. Every day illnesses often cause phlegm as well such a colds and flus. Most of these are not really treatable in the long term unless the disease can be cured. The best thing you can do is to try to discover what you can do to reduce the effects that the disease has on your phlegm build-up. Ask your doctor, look at forums specific to your disease and don’t be afraid to try different things. A couple weeks or months of trying different things could save you years of struggle.

Air Quality:
Air pollution and smoking have both been shown to cause an increase in the amount of phlegm production. This is due to the irritation that they both cause to the throat. Long-term smoking is also a cause of chronic phlegm due to the damaging of the lungs. This puts the body in constant fighting and protection mode because the lungs are permanently irritated. The best cure for either of these is easy. Breathe as much fresh air as possible, stop smoking and if possible move to a place that has better air quality. Not only is this advice good for getting rid of your phlegm, but it is for your overall health.

Stress:
Stress has been known to cause phlegm in a lot of people, especially when the stress is prolonged or severe. A condition that stress can cause that can cause phlegm is called “Vasomotor Rhinitis”. The fact is that stress will affect everybody differently and if you are feeling stressed and start to notice an abnormal increase in phlegm, that may be the cause. Figure out what exactly is stressing you out, but more importantly, figure out what you can do to relieve your stress. Shoot some guns, hit some golf balls, watch some movies… you know best what helps you relax.

Drinking:
Drinking doesn’t so much cause phlegm in your throat, but it will exascerbate it. Alcohol dehydrates the body which dries up any phlegm that may already be in your body. This makes it much harder to dispell. The best defense against this is to simple not drink, but if you are going to drink, then have a couple of glasses of water right before you go to bed, then more when you wake up. The better you can stay hydrated, the easier your fight against phlegm should be. Some people also have an alcohol intolerance which can also cause phlegm, much like an allergy.

Take Action!

Now hopefully you have an idea of what is causing your phlegm. Once you have that idea, you can determine the best course of action to get rid of it or treat it. If it is due to food allergies, eliminate the food. If it is due to stress, then remove some stress from your life. If it is due to drinking too much, then decrease your drinking.

But don’t just stop there. There are a lot of great ways to get rid of phlegm, most of them involving eating certain types of foods.

When it comes down to it, what your body is telling you when you start to get a build-up of phlegm is that something is wrong. It is not always easy to tell exactly what, but if you pay careful attention, you can almost always figure it out. Hopefully with what you have learned from this article, you can get an idea of what is causing your phlegm and take appropriate action.

If you are suffering from a build-up of phlegm, then you may want to make sure that you are eating foods that will help you get rid of it. This is especially the case if some of the food that you have been eating is actually the cause of your phlegm problems. So stop eating those, and start eating some foods that will actually help cure or get rid of your phlegm.

To help you out, I have scoured the web and discovered 10 awesome phlegm treating recipes for you to try out. Each of these recipes utilize ingredients that help to break down that nasty phlegm and help you loosen it, cough it up or just stop producing it altogether. What do you have to lose giving a couple of these a try? You may just find one that not only helps relieve your phlegm symptoms, but also tastes good!

So without further ado, here is the top 10 list!

Top 10 Phlegm Remedy Recipes

1) Masala Chai – This is not so much a recipe as it is a special drink concoction. Every ingredient in this is meant to help break down and reduce the phlegm you are dealing with. Not to mention it is pretty darn delicious.

2) Radish Recipes – There are actually two radish recipes on this page. I recommend going with the radish soup. Radish is a very effective ingredient in loosening phlegm and decreasing throat soreness and irriation.

3) Seaweed and Tofu Soup – A very interesting recipe that will help to cure a cough with phlegm. If you can find the ingredients, give it a go!

4) Salt Water Gargle – This is really only 2 ingredients, but many people swear by the effectiveness of this, that it just had to be on the list.

5) Basil, Pepper, Ginger Boil – This is referred to as a “basic decoction” on the page. It is near the bottom and is considered to be an excellent home remedy for phlegm. Try it out!

6) Haritaki with Honey and Milk – This is a fruit that you can buy in a powder form to take with milk and honey. It is supposed to be great for more extreme cases of phlegm. Worth a try! Be sure to read all of the info on this page before trying.

7) Grape and Licorice Root – On the recipe page, the ‘Kam Choe’ is the licorice root. It sounds like it worked very effectively for the person sharing it. I think I’ll try this one soon!

8) Apple Soup – Not only does this look and sound delicious, but it has some great phlegm curing ingredients. I would eat this even if I wasn’t experiencing problems with phlegm

10) Tomato Tea – I honestly never thought of having tomato in my tea. But in this case, it actually sounds pretty good. Another one I will be trying soon!

Well that is the end of our list of phlegm fighting recipes. I hope you will pick a couple out to give a try and see if they will help you get rid of that nasty phlegm. As someone who knows what it is like to deal with phlegm and not being able to eat a lot of foods that actually agitate my body into producing more phlegm, I am excited to try some of these and I hop you are too.

Be sure to come back and leave a comment on any of these recipes that you try and if they worked for you or not.

The Colors of Mucus and What They Mean

Coughing is primarily a way to clean the airways, but can also be a side effect of some diseases. For the purpose of this article, the type of cough we are referring to is one to clear phlegm and mucus from the throat and airways.

This type of cough will be more of a wet or moist cough than a dry cough. It is sometimes even referred to as a clinging cough when there is stubborn mucus stuck in your throat and it is very difficult to dispell just by coughing. But the urge to cough stays since you can’t seem to get the mucus or phlegm out. These are some of the worst kinds of coughs because they nag on you throughout the entire day. Then there is a the loose cough, which is the type that you actually can cough up the phlegm and mucus. These coughs can be quite enjoyable to dispell a big hunk of nasty mucus that was bugging you.

What do they different colors of mucus mean?

Now that we know what kinds of coughs there are, what about the mucus? The mucus that you are attempting to cough up can come in a couple of different colors and the colors actually mean something a lot of the time. With a cold that causes increased mucus production the mucus will typically be, white, yellow or clear. This signifies a very normal viral infection in most cases. Now if the color of the mucus is green, there may be some sort of secondary bacterial infection. This is usually a result of a viral illness caused by the existing mucus being an ideal breeding ground for bacteria. For coughs with green mucus, it is often times a sign of bronchitis. Bronchitis symptoms first occur as the usual signs of a cold – swelling of the nasal mucosa – scratchy throat – hoarse voice – head, limb, and sore throat discomfort and fever. In the event of a bronchitis infection for two to three days, a painful cough will usually come along with it. There can be mucus that is anywhere from yellow to green that you are constantly coughing up. Furthermore, a burning will often times occur behind the breastbone.

What Can You Do?

There are many different ways to get rid of phlegm and mucus. One thing you can do is apply nasal drops. If you decide to apply nasal drops you should not do so for more than 3 days. You can also try taking a very cold bath if you have a fever that is accompanying your symptoms. Make sure that the water temperature does not exceed 37 degrees. For most colds and mild bronchitis infections, over the counter drugs will bring relief, but it is only temporary. If you have a cough with green mucus, you definitely want to consider seeing a doctor about it. Only a doctor can decide for sure what you are actually suffering from and prescribe powerful medications that will help you to feel better the fastest.

What home remedies can be used to relieve symptoms?

Anyone can use these handy tips to bring relief from the phlegm and mucus in the throat. The first thing that you can do is to ensure that the air is damp. You can do this through the use of a humidifier or you can even sit in your bathroom with the shower running on hot and the door shut. It is also important to drink lots of liquids and eat as healthy as possible. It is very important that you also get enough sleep for the body to be fully rested to fight off any infection that you have. If you decide to soak in a bath, essential oils can be quite healing to use, for example, rosemary, clove, peppermint or eucalyptus should make it easier to cough up mucus and phlegm lodged in the throat.

Another option to treat yourself is a chmomile bath. Stick a handful of chamomile flowers into a pot of boiling water. Place a large towel over your head and inhale the steam for about ten minutes. At night when you go to bed, try rubbing some vapor rub on your chest before lying down. Breathing this in should help to loosen the phlegm while you sleep. Another very useful home remedy is to drink warm milk with a spoonful of honey. However, if you have a cough that produces green mucus, do not try to use home remedies yourself, especially if you have several other bad symptoms such as fever, headache or soreness.

The key to treating yourself when you have a cold or cough that produces phlegm is that you pay attention to the color of the mucus as well as any other symptoms you may be experiencing. If the color is a yellowish, white or clear then you can probably try some of these phlegm home remedies. But if it is a thick green color, then you will want to consider seeing your doctor.

One of the very worst parts of a cold is the phlegm that can build up in your throat. Phlegm is the thick, nasty, yellowy mucus that gets stuck in your throat and makes you feel like you have to cough and hack all of the time to try to remove it. It is the most healthy if you can quickly remove this gunk from your system because it can in fact cause infection and not to mention it is quite uncomfortable to deal with. Try some of these foods for a natural phlegm remedy and avoid the doctor or using unnecessary meds.

Natural Food Remedies to Treat Phlegm

Honey and Pepper
Take one tablespoon of honey and a few dashes of pepper and mix them together. Take this by the spoonful twice per day and you should start to notice a reduction in phlegm within a day or two. Within 5 days, the phlegm should be completely gone.

Honey and Grape Juice
Combine even parts honey and grape juice, approximately 2 tablespoons of each. To this at least 3 times per day for optimal results. The grape juice acts as a natural expectorant and if you stick to this regimen you should be phlegm free in about 5 days.

Slices of Onion with Lemon Juice
Combine a roughly equal amount of onion and lemon in a pot of boiling water. If you would like to improve the taste, add a tablespoon or so of honey. You will drink this mixture cold or room temperature, so give it time to cool off then drink the water. No need to eat the onions! Do this 3 times per day for 2 or 3 days and you should be on your way to ridding yourself of that nasty phlegm.

Peppermint and Eucalyptus Leaves
Put equal numbers of peppermint and eucalyptus leaves into a bowl of boiling water . Bring to a boil then you will need to get a towel to drape over your head while you lean over the boiling pot . This will allow you to inhale the maximum amount of vapor and help loosen the mucus and open up your nasal passages for easier breathing. Definitely useful when the phlegm is getting overwhelming, making it hard to breathe.

Salt, Pepper and Lemon
Take a fresh lemon, cut it in half and squeeze the juice into a small bowl. Then add a dash of salt and a dash of pepper to the fresh lemon. Drink this mixture and it should dry the mucus and help rid your passages of the mucus and phlegm. Do it 2 or 3 times daily for best results.

Vapors
Different vapors are one of the most time tested and effective methods of loosening and getting rid of phlegm and mucus. Vapors can be just plain old water, it can have salt and pepper or any other of herbs or leaves that will help the respiratory system. Using this method is as easy as boiling a pot of water on the stove and leaning over the boiling pot to inhale the vapors Common additives to a boiling pot of water include mint, eucalyptus, sage, thyme , basil and elderberry, among many others.

Garlic
Garlic contains a lot of healthy vitamins and minerals that act as antibiotics. Rather than eating garlic, you can take a piece of garlic, cut it in half and then put 1 half in each side of your cheeks for approximately 1 hour. But don’t plan on going on any dates or getting lucky with the spouse after this if you know what I mean.

As you can see there are a ton of foods that you can use as natural remedies to help alleviate the buildup of phlegm and mucus in your throat and nasal passages. Some of them may work better for you than others. Don’t get discouraged if one does not work, just try a different one.

I hope that you have found this to be both interesting and informative and that it will help you to cure your phlegm as soon as possible.

The causes of phlegm widely vary and it is necessary to pay close attention to your surroundings, your health and what you are putting into your body. Causes can be as simple as an allergy to something in the area to a type of food that you are eating. But before we get into what the most common causes of phlegm are, where does this sticky mucus come from.

Mucus is a thick, sometimes clear, sometimes greenish yellow fluid that can end up in your lungs, clog up your nasal passages and sit in your throat. It can be quite difficult to clear it out from your lungs and throat while the phlegm found in your nose is much easier to clear out. The one thing that is true of any and all excess phlegm in your body is that it can be very annoying and very difficult to deal with.

Mucus is normal to be generated by the body, but the body accelerates the production when it is dealing with an infection. This excess mucus can end up dripping into the throat and even the lungs causing irritation. To fight and protect against the infection, the body tends to create a thickening of the mucus resulting in what is often referred to as phlegm. This is then most easily expelled through the throat, but can often times be difficult to expell.

Of course, it is not just infection that can cause the body to produce excess mucus. A number of other things can cause a reaction in the body to produce more, whether it is needed or not. Let’s look into what some of the most common causes are.

Common Causes of Phlegm

Food: Foods such as dairy, gluten and egg products are very common causes of excess mucus. These can lead to thickening and dripping or clogging in the throat due to an allergic reaction. The best thing to do is to just avoid these foods if you notice an increase of phlegm production after having eaten them.

Smoking, alcohol, caffeine: Much like the foods listed above, these unhealthy habits can cause an increase as well as drying up of mucus, making it harder to flush out.

Medical Disorders: Having Lung cancer or a deviated septum are two medical conditions that could be responsible for excessive or thick mucus in the throat or lungs. There are other medical conditions as well that can be a cause of excess mucus and phlegm. One of the most common ones people struggle with is GERD.

Allergies: Allergies such as hay fever can trigger an increase in the build-up of phlegm that will run through your nasal package and often times back down into your throat. This mucus is created when the sinus passage becomes irriated in response to the particles in the air that you are allergic to. If the air quality outside is not very good, it may be a good idea to stay in-doors.

Common Cold: A common cold can result in a build-up of phlegm that starts out as a clear mucus but can often times become a yellow or green color depending on your infection. The best treatment for a cold is almost always to drink lots of fluids and getting lots of sleep.

These are some of the most common causes of increased phlegm and if you are experiencing it, think about which of these could be contributing to your condition. Once you have pin-pointed the root cause, it will be much easier to determine how to treat yourself or get the treatment needed. If you know of some other common causes of excess phlegm, please share them in the comment section below.

Check out these articles for some great ideas for treating your excess phlegm.

What Causes Phelgm?

There are a number of things that can cause phelgm. The obvious culprits range from colds and flus to allergies from food, pollen, pets or dust. Really, any kind of allergy can cause a build up of phlegm in the throat or lungs. Talk about an annoying side effect huh? I have personally suffered from phlegm due to a couple of these things. One big cause for me is when I eat a large amount of foods that contain gluten.

Phlegm is also caused by diseases, disorders or respiratory system conditions. These conditions can affect the throat, nose, bronchial tubes, lungs and windpipe. One of the most common causes of phlegm is a bacterial or viral infection of the lungs or upper airways. The lungs have a thin layer of mucus on them and when there is an infection present, the body will produce additional mucus to protect the lungs from it. As a result, the additional mucus must be dispelled from the lungs through coughing and hacking to keep the airways clear. It usually does not result in a very pleasant sound or experience for the person doing it. But it is often necessary and just one of the many body functions that we all must deal with.

To get more details on the common causes of phlegm, head over to Causes of Phlegm

Ways To Get Rid Of Phlegm

There are a lot of great methods that you can use to get rid of phlegm, although they may not all work for you. Try some of these methods and see what works best. However, the best way to get rid of phlegm is to never get it, so if you can pin point the cause of your phlegm, you may be able to stop it at its source. If the cause of your phlegm is related to a disease or sickness however, it is a little difficult to prevent, so hopefully these methods can bring you some relief.

Lemon and Honey – Mix approximately 2 teaspoons of lemon juice with 1 teaspoon of honey into a cup of hot water. The lemon will break down the mucus while the honey will help to soothe the throat.

Drink hot liquids – Hot water, hot water mixed with a little salt, hot tea and hot soup are all good options that will break up the mucus in your throat.

Inhale Steam – Inhale steam from a bowl of boiling water or a hot shower to help loosen up the phlegm in your throat.

Take Allergy Meds – If you are experiencing a build up of phlegm due to some sort of allergy, start taking an allergy med such as claritin or Allegra to lessen the symptoms and your bodies reaction to the irritants.

Avoid Irritants – Peanut Butter, Chocolage, Bread and Milk are all irritants that can cause a build up of mucus. Keep these out of your diet and you should notice a decrease in the severity of your phlegm and mucus build up.

Phlegm Sucks!

If you have suffered from phlegm for any extended period of time you know just how bad it is and how much you just want relief from it. There are a lot of options for relief, but you have to figure out your causes, what makes it worse and what methods will actually offer you relief. I will be sharing many more home remedies for phlegm in future articles and hopefully you will read one here that brings you the relief you want so badly.

I can relate because I have suffered from some pretty severe cases of phlegm build up in my lungs before and I know just how painful, annoying and frustrating it can be. I will be sharing all of my research and findings here in future articles, so check back often. You CAN find relief.